Synopsis For our study we chose the subject “The crisis, the rights of autoimmune patients and gender equality in Portugal.” In very general terms, our aim is to analyze the repercussion of the austerity measures on social rights, with special focus on the right to health and the rights of autoimmune patients, described as unavoidable for ensuring the state’s financial resources. The crisis is a current topic and it interferes with many areas of life of the Portuguese people, from health, employment, social protection and finance that due to the dominant political options, compress the social rights and its effectiveness. We bring into play gender equality, for being a topic on the agenda, both in the UN and in the European Union by virtue of discriminatory practices that persistently focus on women and limit the exercise of their rights. Portugal is no longer a stranger to these practices with a commitment to respect, protect and fulfill human rights in its territories, defend its citizens and their rights, including the right to equality of all and the prohibition of discrimination. In our work, we present reflections on the crisis and autoimmune diseases, which affect more women than men and are an intolerable discrimination factor, since the discrimination is based on decreased work capacity and disease. Following this, the best health should be ensured in accordance with internationally accepted standards, through allocation of human and financial resources, guaranteed by good clinical governance, the struggle against waste, mismanagement and corruption. The social rights, generators of large discussions are still faced by many as controversial, but it is on them that the Welfare State and the social model are based and that make the continent unique in the world.